Gibson's new passion

Page Tools

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger expressed disbelief today that
Mel Gibson thought the governor all but hung up on him when the The
Passion of the Christ director called to talk about embryonic
stem-cell research.

The Republican governor of California is supporting a state
ballot initiative to sell $US3 billion ($A4.04 billion) in bonds to
finance stem-cell research, putting him at odds with President
George W Bush's administration, which limits federal funding for
similar studies.

Gibson told ABC TV's Good Morning America that he has
an "ethical problem" with the research and had called the governor
Wednesday night to talk about it.

But when Gibson reached Schwarzenegger, he said the governor
told him he had to make a speech and would call him back.

"Well, Arnold, I'm still waiting for your call," Gibson
said.

Schwarzenegger appeared puzzled.

"I don't know what this was all about," the governor said in Los
Angeles.

"I did talk to him for several minutes and explained to him what
my position was on" the stem-cell proposal, the governor said.
Schwarzenegger said he had to cut short the call because he had to
give a speech in San Diego.

"After that, I called back at 9 o'clock and left a message on
his phone," Schwarzenegger said. "He hasn't returned my call."

Gibson, a Roman Catholic, as is the governor, said that when he
first heard about the proposition, he was overjoyed but later
changed his mind. Gibson said he had no faith in the cloning of
human embryos but would support the use of adult stem cells.

"I found that the cloning of human embryos will be used in the
process and that, for me, I have an ethical problem with that," he
said. "Why do I, as a taxpayer, have to fund something I believe is
unethical?"

Earlier in the week, actor Brad Pitt voiced support of the
measure.

"We have to make sure that we open up these avenues so that our
best and our brightest can go find these cures that they believe
they will find," the actor said. "Proposition 71 accomplishes
this."